Which game is best if we have never played together before?

Skip. One button each, a marker on the water that shows what your hold does, and a race that is over in about a minute and a half. Then Nerve, which is a single decision repeated.

Can we play on one phone at the same time?

Yes, with the games built for it. Skip, Scull and Sluice split the screen into halves. Flock, Wake and Yoke give each player controls on their own edge of the phone. Turn-based games are simpler: you pass the phone.

What if one of us always wins?

Change the kind of skill the game rewards. Turn-based games take reflexes out. Co-op games take winning out. The Triple Crown spreads three different skills over three games, so the winner changes from leg to leg.

Do these games need an account or a download?

No. They run in the browser, with nothing to install and nothing to sign up for. Progress like series standings is saved on your device.

What Should We Play Tonight? A Four-Question Picker

Picking a game takes longer than playing one. So this page is not a list. It is four questions. Answer them in order. Each answer rules games out. What is left is tonight's game. Every pick here is one of our own, runs in the browser, and seats two people on one device.

Question 1: how much time do you have?

Five minutes. Pick a game with short rounds and no setup. Nerve is one push at a time. Button is one throw at a time. Skip is a three-round race that ends in about a minute and a half.

Fifteen minutes. That is one full match of almost anything. Sumo Smash, Fuse or Wake will fill it exactly. Or play one leg of the Triple Crown.

Half an hour or more. Play a set. Drift Duel is best of three races. The Triple Crown is three games with a shared scoreboard. Or stack turn-based games like Tilt and Fulcrum, where every match teaches you the next one.

Question 2: what are you playing on?

One keyboard. Everything works. One player takes WASD, the other takes the arrows. If that is new to you, the same-keyboard guide shows the layouts.

One phone, both playing at once. Pick a game with a touch layout for two. Skip is a hold on your half of the screen. Scull and Sluice are taps on your half. Flock, Wake and Yoke give each player a stick or buttons on their edge of the phone.

One phone, passing it back and forth. Pick a turn-based game. Tilt, Fulcrum, Sleight, Nerve, Button, Spill, Bloom and Vector all work this way. Only one of you ever needs to touch the screen.

Question 3: what mood are you in?

Calm. Nobody loses. Quilt has no timer and no way to lose. You fill one board together. Bloom is a garden race, but a gentle one.

Laughing. Flock makes you herd sheep you cannot touch. Yoke gives two people one body, and the arguments are the fun part.

Head to head. Sumo Smash is a shove-off in a ring. Fuse is a bomb rally where you aim with your feet. Wake is a race where second place is the fastest seat.

Together, against the game. Tether, Beam and Color Gates are puzzles built for two. Each one needs both of you, and neither can finish alone. The co-op collection has the full set.

Question 4: is one of you much better at games?

If yes, skip anything that rewards fast fingers. Turn-based games level the floor: Tilt, Nerve, Button, Spill, Bloom, Vector. Co-op games remove the loser entirely. And the Triple Crown splits the verdict three ways, so the same person rarely wins all three legs. The couples collection was picked with exactly this rule.

If the gap is small, anything goes. Pick by mood instead.